OUGD603 - Typeface design - Neoclassical, Classical & Grecian architecture

The look and feel of Grainger Town is determined by the iconic architecture so I needed to understand the key characteristics of each style which inspired the architects. Neoclassical, Classical and Grecian are all types of architecture used to describe Grainger Town, and were in fact John Dobson's influences and preferred style of architecture. Looking more into these genres is crucial as they may turn out be the main source of visual inspiration for the typeface, just as they were for Grainger and Dobson for rebuilding Newcastle.

Grecian Architecture
Ancient Greek architecture is best known from its iconic temples, and it is distinguished by its highly formalised characteristics, both of structure and decoration. This is particularly so in the case of temples where each building appears raised on high ground so that the elegance of its proportions and the effects of light on its surfaces might be viewed from all angles. The style is split into three styles which are the Doric Order, the Ionic Order and the Corinthian Order, which have had a profound effect on Western architecture of later periods. Grainger Town is an example of this, and how Classicism kept the style alive along with key details.

What can be transferred into a typeface is the importance of Greek architectures logic and order. Logic and order are at the heart of Greek architecture as their temples according to a coded scheme of parts, based first on function, then on a reasoned system of sculptural decoration. Mathematics determined the symmetry, the harmony, the eye's pleasure. building art offered the first clear, strong expression of a rational, national architectural creed. It is the supreme example of the intellect working logically to create a unified aesthetic effect. Greek designers used precise mathematical calculations to determine the height, width and other characteristics of architectural elements. These proportions might be changed slightly, and certain individual elements (columns, capitals, base platform), might be tapered or curved, in order to create the optimum visual effect, as if the building was a piece of sculpture.

Greek architecture devised three main orders or templates. They were the Doric Order, the Ionic Order and the Corinthian Order. These Orders laid down a broad set of rules concerning the design and construction of temples and similar buildings. These rules regulated the shape, details, proportions, and proportional relationships of the columns, capitals, entablature, pediments and stylobate. These three templates could also determine the design of a typeface so these are templates to bear in mind when designing.